Developer Digest: April 25, 2019

Welcome back to Developer Digest. As our platform evolves, we’re excited to work with you to solve merchant challenges.

In this edition, we introduce API versioning, new features to the platform, and the latest deprecations. And in case you missed it, we’ve got you covered with the details you need to know about Shopify Unite 2019—our largest annual conference and your opportunity to directly connect with the Shopify Partner community.

API versioning

To ensure that changes to the Shopify platform are predictable and clearly communicated, we’ve introduced API versioning at Shopify. This change provides a more reliable way to release valuable but complex projects that is less disruptive for our developer ecosystem to adopt.

Our first version of Shopify’s Admin API (GraphQL and REST), called 2019-04, has now been released. There will be no immediate effect on your app, but we encourage you to start calling 2019-04 in your private and public apps today. We are currently only versioning the Shopify Admin API.

To help you transition in between updates, you will be able to review the user interface of upcoming features with developer previews in the Partner Dashboard. This will allow you to test your apps and custom integrations, build new features, or update marketing and support documentation to better serve merchants.

What you need to know about API versioning:

New versions will be released every quarter in January, April, July, and October and will be supported for 12 months after their release date.

Our naming convention for new API versions is calendar-based and includes the year followed by the month. For example, 2019-04 is for the April 2019 release, 2019-07 for the July release, and so forth.

Although not recommended for app production, you can also test new API changes in development using our unstable or release candidate versions without directly affecting your app. However, there is no guarantee that endpoints won’t change or that all features will remain the same.

Our first version, 2019-04, has the same behavior as the API called with no version. You can continue to call the Admin API with no version, and Shopify will return with the oldest supported version.

Shopify Unite 2019

Shopify Unite 2019, our fourth annual partner and developer conference, will take place at the Beanfield Centre in Toronto July 18-20, 2019.

As a Shopify app developer, this is your opportunity to meet like-minded entrepreneurs, attend workshops, and hear from leadership on new product releases. You can also book office hours to speak with a Shopify team member with technical or business strategy expertise.

In addition, we will have plenty of opportunities for networking with your peers, as well as an after hours party to ring in the weekend.

Whether you want to build apps for the Shopify App Store, offer private app development services, or are looking for ways to grow your user base, the Shopify Partner Program will set you up for success. Join for free and access educational resources, developer preview environments, and recurring revenue share opportunities.

POS embedded apps are no longer supported on iOS 9 or earlier

An important reminder that apps that use the Shopify POS App SDK will no longer function on devices that use iOS 9 or earlier. Any calls to embedded apps will fail to return and your clients will receive an error page that prompts them to upgrade their device or operating system.

API throttling on paginated requests

As of April 1, 2019, there is a new limit on page-based pagination requests when the resource offset generated by a request is greater than 100,000. This allows the connection to remain open and errors to a minimum.

For these requests, apps will be limited to one API call every two seconds instead of the two calls per second provided by the standard API call limit.

In the event that you experience this throttle, we encourage you to adopt since_id based pagination instead of using page. When using since_id your requests will not be subject to the new pagination throttle as long as the page parameter isn’t used in the same request.

If you find yourself in a situation that requires a page parameter, you are encouraged to adopt the Retry-Afterresponse header and adjust your request rate accordingly.

A stronger community

We hope that these updates instill the confidence you need to build on the Shopify platform, while helping you to grow the business of your dreams.

Build apps for Shopify merchants

Whether you want to build apps for the Shopify App Store, offer private app development services, or are looking for ways to grow your user base, the Shopify Partner Program will set you up for success. Join for free and access educational resources, developer preview environments, and recurring revenue share opportunities.

About the author

Alex Preston

Alex Preston is a content marketing intern on the Shopify Partners Team. She’s passionate about small business, community development, and design. When she’s not brainstorming new content ideas, you can assume she’s planning her next big bike trip.